ShotMarker - April 2019 Update
A Year in Review
Adam MacDonald
April 7, 2019
Adam MacDonald
April 7, 2019
We are proud to announce that during our first 12 months on the market, over 1000 ShotMarker e-targets have been sold in 15 countries worldwide. In one short year, ShotMarker has initiated a paradigm shift to accurate, reliable, and affordable electronic targets for personal and competitive rifle shooting.
With its initial announcement in February 2018, ShotMarker disrupted the target shooting world by offering a fully featured 8-sensor acoustic e-target system at 5x reduced cost than comparable alternatives.
This sudden leap forward was in no small part due to the decision to base the design around LoRa long range wireless technology. In contrast to traditional Wifi, this low power RF protocol is ideally suited for transmitting small packets of sensor data over long distances. Up to 250 targets can be seamlessly networked, transmit over 2 miles, and run for 4 days on an internal, rechargeable battery.
Combined with a heavy dose of 3D printing and 100% direct sales and service, we have a product that is inexpensive to manufacture, can adapt quickly to feedback, and has the flexibility to continuously improve.
With its initial announcement in February 2018, ShotMarker disrupted the target shooting world by offering a fully featured 8-sensor acoustic e-target system at 5x reduced cost than comparable alternatives.
This sudden leap forward was in no small part due to the decision to base the design around LoRa long range wireless technology. In contrast to traditional Wifi, this low power RF protocol is ideally suited for transmitting small packets of sensor data over long distances. Up to 250 targets can be seamlessly networked, transmit over 2 miles, and run for 4 days on an internal, rechargeable battery.
Combined with a heavy dose of 3D printing and 100% direct sales and service, we have a product that is inexpensive to manufacture, can adapt quickly to feedback, and has the flexibility to continuously improve.
Our assembly workshop, for ShotMarker and AutoTrickler.
Last fall, we redesigned the sensor electronics in order to specifically improve the frequency of missed shots in rapid fire, without compromising compatibility or accuracy. Clubs who regularly shoot Across the Course rapid fire stages have been happy to report a 10x improvement, and the new sensors have been standard with all orders since January.
Now in April, we are raising the bar once again. Our new, internally redesigned Access Point supports up to 250 targets and 250 firing line devices (tablets, smartphones, etc.). We now have a hassle-free, extremely scalable design allowing clubs to run any size event, without the need for a separate server or any additional costs.
As of this point, the new Access Point is standard with every ShotMarker system. That's right, the small white box that costs $100 and fits in your pocket can also run a 25 target match without breaking a sweat. The new Access Point has been in operation with all of the largest clubs using ShotMarker since January, and now after a few months with zero issues, it is ready to be shipped with all orders.
Why would you ever need to connect more than 100 targets at once, you ask? Dead Zero Shooting Park in Tennessee is a new construction 1000 yard facility that will soon be equipped with 175 ShotMarker e-targets (7 rows of 25 lanes). Instead of designing a custom solution for one large range, we simply improved the core technology to scale up to this limit.
Testing antennas at 5.2 kilometers.
If that wasn't enough, I'd also like to mention some of the new software features that are on the way. Very soon there will be the ability to import and export individual saved strings, making it easier for individuals to share an Access Point at the range. There will also be built-in support for match statistics and reporting, so that we can all figure out who wins and make it home just a little bit sooner.
Later, ShotMarker will take to the cloud, offering a web portal for clubs to upload scores, and for competitors to view results interactively, shot by shot. Also, I plan to add the ability to import or design custom target faces, improved pair-firing functionality, plot-o-matic, and more...
My vision has always been to bring target rifle shooting into the 21st century. Affordable, reliable e-target hardware is only the beginning.
For more information: back to the main website!